Category Archives: Actions

When you evicted the Hambi, when you cut those trees, when you destroyed these houses, when you arrested people, when you took our mates to jail, did you really think we won’t revenge?

The company Wasel got attacked yesterday night, with six incendiary devices placed on six vehicles, because they gave their machinery to RWE, because they made it possible for the police to evict the forest, because they are part of a system we hate. more…

deutsch—-Friends from the AZ asked us to publish this call and schedule for RabAZ (action days to preserve the AZ Cologne) here on the blog. ONE STRUGGLE ONE FIGHT! ——

Hambi, Wagenplatz or AZ – Displacement affects us all!

The Wagenplatz “Wem gehört die Welt” and the AZ, Autonomous Center of Cologne, invite you to a tough first weekend of October from October 4 to 7: getting together, exchanging and networking, going out together – and above all, make RABAZ! more…

Manheimlebt‏ @manheimlebt:20:03 It looks like we’re encircled again. We have got food and water for days to endure! From now on we need your solidarity on the outside. Occupy, invite the cops for a walk or a ride, or come around to wave. Anything that keeps the cops busy is helping us!15:53 The street party is taking place outside, we are comfortable inside. Because we can not go! Photo: Greetings from Evok from the roof, the cops are bored in the background.12:06 The street party was moved by the police to the corner Forsthausstraße – Blumenstraße. At the moment 15 vans around the house – people are not bothered or the time being.

October 28th
About the evacuation of the Hamachbahn among others: @EAHambi.20:59@EAHambi: The @Polizei_NRW_AC gives the people in the RWE train no drinking water for over 7 hours. They are forced now to drink the toilet water and are afraid of getting sick.13:59@Manheimlebt: Manheim Autonomous Zone 46 proclamation! Come by, bring sleeping bags and food (water especially) and move into your dream house (RE)OCCUPY AND REBUILD!https://hambachforest.org/blog/2018/10/26/maz-46-occupation-statement-26-10-18/09:21Manheimlebt: So far, everything is quiet here. No cops. Thanks for the many support during the last days and nights.

October 27th
Not a really good day for Coaliath because of @Ende__Gelaende.
But we should not forget the besieged house in Manheim #manheimlebt15:59@Manheimlebt: Garfield is Back on the Throne of anarchism. And a Lot of guests too. Because #manheimlebt09:35 Food can finally pass!
If we had some gas cartridges and coffee, the day would be almost perfect (according to circumstances) ⛾ ☺ #Manheimlebt #manheimisststabil #manheimbleibt #HambacherForst

Has this ever happened before? The police checking the personal details of EVERYONE who intends to attend a officially approved meeting. For this purpose, the station Düren was blocked, the passengers of a special train leaded directly to a cordoned off parking and the train traffic significantly impeded. Although there neither was any danger nor anyone of this crowd committed a crime. And although yesterday a @Ende__Gelaende activist was acquitted in Cottbus. See there. For many people, who previously had an unshakable belief in the rule of law, this must be a hard lesson: NRW is not a banana republic but for sure a lignite republic.
Text only version. The complete live ticker with pictures by @Ti_Wag
Anett Selle, video footage Düren control point #EndeGelaende

18:13 The camp of @Ende__Gelaende is enormous. Maybe there are more people than ever before. The @HambiBleibt and today’s police action at Düren station seem to have motivated a few more than usual. Tomorrow will be thrilling!17:06 For all those who are still traveling from Cologne to @Ende__Gelaende and want to save yourselves as much as possible the chicane of the police: Travel to Horrem and take from there the local train S19 to Düren. Get out in Merzenich. It’s about as far as from Düren but with less police.16:15 The Verwaltungsgericht (administrative court) of Aachen rejects the urgent petition against the police actions & checks of @Ende__Gelaende at Düren station. Press release: http://www.vg-aachen.nrw.de/behoerde/presse/pressemitteilungen/32_181026/index.php … #EndeGelaende. A complaint against this before the OVG Münster is possible. No suspensive effect.14:27 Police are searching the luggage of all activists of @Ende__Gelaende at Düren station. Although currently only a few go voluntarily, the police cannot cope with the amount of work. The measure will take the whole day.
…12:26 The activists of @Ende__Gelaende are forced to go from the station Düren into a large fenced in area. Everyone sits down now.12:17 Police President of Aachen, Weinspach, standing opposite the track @Ende__Gelaende and gets an impression of the situation.12:15 The people of @Ende__Gelaende now want to run out of the station as a block to the right, because the negotiations with the police lead to nothing. The first ones coming down from the platform now.12:13 Police threaten @End_Gelaende with eviction of the platform. The meeting would no longer be tolerated. Police have put on helmets.11:55 The activists are still on the track. There are still negotiations whether all their personal details must be determined or not.11:43 Police Aachen tweets: To the persons from the special train: At Düren station, a checkpoint approved under the police law is awaiting you. That means that they want to control all arrivals. Legal basis is allegedly the PolG.11:26 Mood on the platform in Düren is good. A samba band is playing. Activists shout: Let’s go, let’s go #endgelaende
Police still wants activists to leave the platform.11:06 Activists of @Ende__Gelaende at the Buir station are now waiting for the platform until a spontaneous demo is registered. Meanwhile, police demands to leave the platform for security reasons. Activists are afraid of being checked each.10:59 The coordination of @Ende__Gelaende wants to leave the station to the left, directly to the camp. Police want the other direction. It is very crowded on the platform.10:44 The special train arrived from @Ende__Gelaende in Düren. People are slowly getting out. Around the station is extremely much police. All exits are blocled by several police cordons.09:09 The police are already securing the station with fences and several hundreds of cops. In less than an hour, the special train will arrive here with activists of #EndeGelände.

Without time: acquittal for an activist in Cottbus. He was charged with trespassing. His “crime”: in 2016, he joined thousands of others in a #EndeGelaende action in an opencast lignite mine. Such judgments are indicative for other courts (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Case_law)22:30 6-7 police vans at Buir railway station.19:53@Oaktown1312 wrote: What we heard about the eviction of @Ende__Gelaende Camp last night in Manheim: Mayor of Kerpen & Fire Brigade Kerpen want to clear. Police Aachen say no. Mayor grasses this to the Interior Minister Reul, who orders eviction.18:57 Two persons who disclosed their personal details during the occupation in Morschenich were allowed to leave. For the others a prisoner van is arriving.18:46 Residents seem to be quite positive about the occupations. They think most houses are broken by the vacancy anyway.18:41 In Morschenich it is quite relaxed from the outside, little police. It is hard to see what happens on the site. Approximately 15 local residents are present and venting their anger about RWE & forced resettlement.18:37 The occupation of Elsdorfer Straße 15 in Morschenich is almost over. Police broke the windows and brought out occupiers. These are currently being detained in the garage, to be identified and photographed.15:53 A new house squat has just been made public. It is located Elsdorfer Straße 15 in Morschenich – one of the two villages that are threatened by the mine.
Our solidary greetings and people are cordially invited @Lorien4930747914:44 News about the eviction stop of the last house in #manheimlebt. With his lawyer a squatter submitted an application against the eviction. A judge then spoke to the police, who moved away until the decision. That can be made short term. @SWeiermann14:33 The elevators and some of the police retired from the occupied houses. RWE nails up the surrounding empty houses. Some security guards are standing around.14:10 From the back side of the occupation in Manheim just 15 people walked into the garden. 5 climbed onto a garage roof. Police did not notice anything and threw the others out of the garden.13:36 The members of the press are now behind a barrier in front of the occupation. The view is good. They are waiting for the special cops unit beginning to set up the equipment for eviction.12:42 +++ BREAKING NEWS : #EndeGelaende has a new campsite: Stockheimer Landstraße 171, Düren-Stepprath,, Neuer Hof. The camp construction has begun. Here 4000 people can sleep and go together to stop the #Kohle! +++12:28 At the still occupied house in Manheim, two elevators and climbing police arriving. Meanwhile, a press spokesperson from RWE giving interviews. #hambibleibt #hambacherforst11:43 Waiting at the occupied house. Climbing police was there a while ago, nothing has happened since. #hambibleibt #hambacherforst10:10 Legal situation according to @Polizei_NRW_AC: The court did not issue the eviction order requested by RWE, because a name must be on it – and names are not known. As they say, the eviction of the houses in Manheim without order is possible due to the police law.10:50 Except for the house with the activists on the roof, in front of which are now two jump cushions, the others are now empty / evicted. One activist came voluntarily from the roof of another house. #hambibleibt #hambacherforst #EndeGelaende10:40 Despite unsettled legal basis, the police are currently evicting the occupied houses in Manheim. A court decision was not awaited. This way facts are probably to be created before the activists of @Ende__Gelaende arrive.10:27 Police have no real grounds for evacuating the occupied houses in Manheim. Reference is made to press release in the afternoon. There allegedly are other grounds such as security & the continued offense of trespassing.10:05 About 10 people sit on one of the roofs of the occupied houses. RWE cuts bushes around the house to enable the fire brigade to set up a jump cushion.09:52 Parts of the contiguous occupied housing complex in Manheim have already been evicted. Some activists came out voluntarily. About 10 people are encercled in the street and ID checks are running.09:39 In the @hambicamp the first 50 people are just arriving for the @Ende__Gelaende camp. RWE has plowed the meadow near the camp so that nobody can camp there. The police are meanwhile with many forces on the spot and now is also evicting the occupied houses.

October 24th

A detailed live ticker with pictures of the eviction of the Ende Gelände Camp.22:43 Police makes announcement with megaphone which is hard to understand. Even official next to it notes “a bit quiet”. Whoever stays commits allegedly trespassing. Then the eviction starts. @Ti_Wag19:12 At the plenary session of @Ende__Gelaende Camp it is said that the police wants to evict. There is no alternative camping site. The offer is: the activist can leave without being checked & with small tents only. The big ones will be confiscated. #EndeGelaende @Ti_WagAfternoon “Ende Gelände” building their camp in Manheim. The administrative court in Aachen had previously forbidden them to camp in Niederzier. They refused the space offered by the police Aachen on the Merscher Höhe in Jülich. Too far away from .Morning Coal commission in Bergheim. RWE/IGBCE demo with payed participants. Slogan: “Without good jobs no good climate”. Good jobs on a sinking ship?

22:57 The district court of Cologne dismissed this afternoon the eviction action by RWE! let’s party 🙂 @manheimlebt18:20 Did you ask yourself today too, where could be more locked bat caves?
Check this out:
50.8801890,6.5538780 50°52’48.7″N 6°33’14.0″E
50.8807720,6.5546300 50°52’50.8″N 6°33’16.7″E
50.8807830,6.5534180 50°52’50.8″N 6°33’12.3″E
50.8817230,6.5560390 50°52’54.2″N 6°33’21.7″E@Oaktown1312

October 21st

21:33 After RWE filed an eviction complaint and the cops are increasingly spending their time plodding around on the Friedensstrasse and arresting people, we think a soon eviction of the occupied houses is likely.Update:#manheimlebt21:03 After ID check of the both persons and searching the car the cops are retreating.20:59 The cops tried to prevent delivery of food to the occupied house. The personal details of both persons were checked and the car was searched.20:41 Cops are at the house. Around the kitchen van. @manheimlebt@manheimlebt16:11 Whoever wants to visit the coal mine again, please do not forget pink paint for the excavator. That will knock them out 😉https://twitter.com/bst_hh/status/1054012367489716224/photo/115:00 End of the excavator occupation. 3 people released, 2 in custody. RWE calls the action “extremely dangerous”. We say: much less than the continued extraction of fossil fuels. Police said it was not dangerous.14:00 Activist, who approached the occupied houses in Manheim, is thrown to the ground by the police and taken away.13:53 Climbing cops in action. However, 4 activists have climbed the upper deck of the lignite excavator. Meanwhile it has been standing still for 8 hours!12:20 Situation unchanged.10:50 Press release No jobs on a dead planet09:42Interview WDR with an activist (German)08:55 Sun has risen over the Hambach opencast mine. People singing on the excavator. After an announcment by the police, an accompanying journalist leaves the excavator and is taken away. Three journalists withdraw after talking with the cops from the digging edge.08:35 Activists are still standing and occupying excavator near the Crow’s Nest. For support and press is requested!06:19 Bucket wheel excavator occupation, excavator is standing still!

October 18th

17:54 The police left Manheim.17:24 Secu guards sitting behind our garden! In information says that it should be about us today!
16:30 Police get out of their cars and immediately start provoking with dogs and pepper spray to push away peaceful activists because they stand in solidarity with the encircled people!16:30 Police escalates and arrests 4 activists. Use of dogs and pepper spray, without any provocation.~16:00 People from the occupied house at #Friedenstrasse in #Manheimlebt are prevented by security guards from looking for useful furniture in a dumpster. They hold the activists and call the “administrative assistance” of their comrades in arms, the police.13:53 Another dead bat found in trees closed by #RWE. Also the reluctance on the side of RWE and their city administration of Kerpen to reopen them is an attempt to destroy the population of #protectedspecies making it easier for the company to win the present @bund_net court case, if their “conservation” efforts kill off remaining endangered species in #HambacherForst12:11 Bat Rescue. After 2 weeks RWE & city of Kerpen still have not reopened the tree habitats with animals trapped outside & inside. Activists are heading out to remove the plastic still blocking access to hundreds of treesToday demolition of the very old Immerath Mill. RWE had kept the date secret until the end. Now, according to some information, they feared an occupation during the upcoming action of Ende Gelände.

October 17th

Approximately 100 RWE employees and members of the trait union IGBCE mobbing in front of the house of Antje Grothus, who has been campaigning for years for the social compatibility of the inevitable structural change in the Rhenish lignite mining area. The chairman of the works council and the local union Walter Butterweck wanted to “spontaneously” bring 100 protesters to the store. “Accidentally” the police guided them past the house of Antje Grothus on the way back. That is certainly unique in the history of the law of assembly.
Statement by Antje Grothus.#SolimitAntje

16:30 All the people being picked up and driven to the camp.14:07 People taken out of the open pit by the cops and brought to Niederzier. Photos and fingerprints taken.12:45 Activists are carried away by the cops.12:25 The cops are taking people to their cars for a photo10:58 A bus of RWE / the cops arrives.10:45 Cops have been there for half an hour, but so far no announcement.09:30 An employee RWE steals a banner from activists.09:08 20 people encircled by security guards, others leave unmolested the pit.08:43 Excavator is standing still now.08:25 Approx. 30 people in open pit, on the way to the excavator.

October 8th

9:00 Next nice message: No meadow eviction today. Kurt Claßen (owner of the meadow in front of the Hambach Forest) will speak up tomorrow.8:00 Police seems to be serious: no vans to be seen when we get up. Astonishing how fast you can “get used” to constant repression… Why was this mission necessary again?

October 7th

at night: there are still places to sleep in the forest. Whether platforms or hammocks, the trees are still standing. So come over!17:00 Activists, who had spent the night under the bucket wheel of an excavator, left the RWE area freely. After more than 27 hours!16:30 People are climbing trees and reopening the bat caves taped by RWE.16:00 Excavator at the highest level in the open pit still blocked!16:00 NRW minister of the interior Reul announces that police will completely retire from the “danger area” on Monday (tomorrow). What a completely unnecessary campaign!16:00 Crime scene inspection by a larger group north behind the SecuPunkt at Hambach Forest. Here are the remains of our tree houses!15:00 Orchestra “Lebenslaute” plays a second time today. This time in the destroyed tree house settlement Oaktown.15:00 Meanwhile in Cologne: RabAZ demo is on!14:00 Many of the forest walkers roam freely in the wood and support new occupations and blockades.12:30 Forest walk is starting! Without any problem into the forest!11:50 Unfortunately we had to turn back because of the police. The tree house from #Pödelwitz will nevertheless arrive in the #HambacherForst! It’s not that easy to intimidate us. See you on the forest walk.11:50 The Hambachbahn blockade by Lebenslaute has been evicted. People being checked and sent-offs are pronounced. Police still seem to be active.11:00 Orchestra “Lebenslaute” paralyzes the Hambachbahn and sings loudly while jolly forest strollers trickle in with the S-Bahn railway.morning: Many people found a new (temporary) home in Hambach Forest and are now awakened by drizzle.10:42 We are standing at the solidarity! climbing action on Neumarkt in Cologne for the @RheinEnergie marathon. Twenty percent of RheinEnergie is owned by RWE, it gets more than a third of its electricity from dirty lignite and operates the coal power plant Merkenich in Cologne.

Incomplete summary of the situation in & around the forest:– Dead wood barricades again on (all) paths and roads, also on the new ones!– An incredible number of people in the forest– Continuation of actively constructing and comfortably fitting out new occupations– The Ende Gelände hammock action went off in a relaxed way– many people slept in the forest– The vigil (next to the stage / rally) survived the day and was not overrun– also in the HambiCamp in Manheim incredibly many campers, tents, people…– Incoming of crowd just does not end. Some have to walk 8km to get to the rally – what the fuck?!– there are nice drinks in the backstage area 😉– slight overstrain in the face of the crowds for some activists– badass, blatant solidarity! Thank you! Wow! What a strong sign!

14:03 Message on twitter: 50,000 people at the demo around and in the forest!14:00 Demo #hambibleibt starting from Richardplatz Cologne.12:02 The police blocked the exit to Merzenich “to avoid a traffic backlog on the motorway” and thus created one. Now they are unblocking the way. image10:04 Announcement at the main station of Cologne, travelers with destination Buir may also use the RE trains. From Horrem a bus shuttle service to Buir has been set up.10:00 477 coming from the A4 completely blocked. The police permits no one at the roundabout to go to Buir or Manheim. #hambibleibt #hambacherforst09:35 Police are trying to stop people at the entrance to Buir. They should park their car and then walk, about 10km…

October 5th

11:30 Despite deforesting stop, RWE declares the east of the forest “factory premises” and they are building barriers.11:10 Next to a newly erected protective wall, RWE security guards act aggressively against a demonstration.11:00 The Oberverwaltungsgericht (OVG, Higher Administrative Court) in Münster has forbidden felling trees in Hambach Forest for the time being! Press release OVG

October 4th

19:00 The police inforced their presence in the evening. On the Secu Road about 30 vans, a bright floodlight at DeathPop. Intensified ID and bag checks between the vigil and the forest, an eviction tank was spotted and there are unconfirmed reports of arrests. Also near Morschenich reinforced police seems to be on the road.

20:20 The last person at BlackSocks was probably taken from the tree.17:02 Only a handful of cops at BlackSocks.16:15 Under BlackSocks all platforms are destroyed, at least 1 person still in treetop. Ghost Town is completely evicted. Fenrir & QualityLand: floor structures evicted. There are also evictions of people on trees.12:27 Police again pour out water under Fenrir.12:05 A shovel comes on and the scene is covered with barrier tape.11:57 The eviction at Fenrir has just begun.11:45 Cops storm over the barricades under Fenrir 2.0. and encircle activists inside the circle.

As forest communities one after another have been demolished, new tree houses and occupations and their extended defenses have been popping up like mushrooms after the rain: Fendria, Ghostown and Paragraph 11.
P11 and Ghostown have been surrounded by all around barricade-like walls, with inside a village like community of ground blockaders with kitchens, supply storage. P11 has areas protected not just by one perimeter of rampart walls, more…

The deadly event in the Hambach Forest on 19.09.2018 shocked me, in my already existing sadness and nervous overstimulation, and almost made me freeze up. To work against this feeling of suspension, I tried, with the following cutout of my memory, to process my experiences, which I luckily have the possibility to share. Only days before I was brought into a life-threatening situation, by police-officers and RWE-workers hand-in-hand. With this small piece of text, I am trying to encourage people who say „they are doing a great job“ or „the activists are bringing themselves into danger“ to reconsider. To all police-officers who had doubts, whether at the place of action or in the detention centre: just stop only following orders and defending your own situation. Think about it, and change it. more…

The AZ Cologne (autonomous center) and the Wagenplatz “Who owns the world”, also in Cologne, are both in acute danger of eviction and destruction. The AZ for the extension of the green belt, a parking strip across Cologne, the Wagenplatz should be sold.
The exploitation interests of an unbridled financial market in the city of Cologne are the cause of this distribution of primarily left, self-managed open spaces from the cityscape of Cologne. These mostly noncommercial spaces, which do not bring big money to anyone but much more bring people together, should go away. more…

In the last years Hambach Forest has become an international symbol of climate justice! So has every single occupation that stood firm against RWE Climate Killer coal for last several years, and continues in our hearts and our stories long after it is physically gone.

One occupation, Lorien, remains and has done so for the last 2 weeks of intense blockades involving tripods all around this tree-sit barrio reinforced by sit-down more…

Now all the more!
Demonstration for the preservation of the Hambach forest and the immediate exit from fossil fuels.

Thursday, 09/27/2018, Buir station with kick-off rally
Start of the demonstration: 5:00 pm

Since 09/13/2018, RWE and the state government try with a massive police operation to evict the tree houses in the Hambach Forest under threadbare justifications. Tens of thousands of people have faced up to this madness with demonstrations, sitting blocks, petitions, forest walks and occupations of the coal railway and power plants. more…

20:47 Meanwhile Ghost Town is encircled by four floodlights and two eviction tanks.20:00 A parliamentary observer is on the way to Ghost Town.18:52 Press come to Ghost Town, please! Police do not let in water, bottles are emptied in front of the occupants and thrown into the forest. Officer in charge: Who wants to drink must first get out, behind the barrier tape.17:00 The RWE action is over and people are coming back to the meadow again.16:11 RWE is causing massive destruction on the meadow.15:50 In Ghost-Town peace has returned. more…